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Posts Tagged ‘Veganism’

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Try Something Vegan

In Food For Thought on January 4, 2017 at 5:25 pm

It’s a new year, so why not try something new, something vegan? If you live across the pond, no doubt you’ve heard of the annual Veganuary event that takes place in January or seen their cute animal ads.

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Launched in the U.K. in 2014, Veganuary is a global charity dedicated to changing public attitudes, while providing information and practical support on making the transition to veganism. The campaign encourages people around the world to try vegan in January.

If you’ve ever entertained the idea, now is the perfect time as a host of international celebrities have shared their favourite vegan meals and recipes in a brand-new e-cookbook. The cookbook is free, to everyone who registers to take part in Veganuary online at www.veganuary.com, and includes fellow Canadians Pamela Anderson’s Gluten-free Pizza, and an Artichoke Salad, Fennel Salad and Blitzed Broccoli Salad from Bryan Adams. Once registered, participants will be sent information, advice and more yummy recipes.

Believe it or not, it’s true: vegans save lives – animal lives of course and perhaps our own human lives. Veganism is one of the most effective choices a person can make to reduce the suffering of animals, help the planet, and improve personal health.

Last year 23,000 people from 142 countries took part in Veganuary worldwide, including almost 1,000 Canadians who ate no animal products in January. The move to meat-free foods in Canada has been extraordinary, with eight per cent now saying they are vegetarian or mostly vegetarian, while another 25 per cent are moving away from meat-centred meals to plant-based recipes and products. This dramatic change has seen stores and restaurants respond with 100 per cent vegan restaurants opening while others have added vegan options or created full vegan menus.

Says Clea Grady, Marketing Manager at Veganuary: “The rise in veganism may be influenced by celebrities but the number one reason that people give for taking part in Veganuary is to protect animals. Farming is a brutal business. Male chicks are killed at a day old because they aren’t able to lay eggs, unwanted calves are shot, and pigs are locked in crates and treated like breeding machines.”

Something to think about before you tuck into your next meal.

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Veggie Ground to Keep Around

In Good Eats, Recently Reviewed on June 18, 2013 at 10:32 am

I’ve finally found an organic ground beef substitute! When I stumbled upon this non-GMO-verified version from Sol Cuisine, I couldn’t wait to try it in my usual recipes such pasta sauces, stir fry’s and Sheppard’s Pie.

Sol Cuisine Organic Veggie Crumbles, $4.99, Loblaws . vegground

We eat a lot of soy products, so I try to find organic ones wherever possible since I discovered that soy is one of the most genetically modified (GMO) foods out there. This ground is also vegan and gluten free. PRODUCT NOTES Looks and tastes as good, if not better, as the other veggie grounds we’ve used in the past. My family devoured the spaghetti sauce I made. Not even a speck of it was leftover for lunches the next day. BOTTOM LINE Lately, I haven’t been able to find this product in my regular supermarket although I noticed they do carry other Sol Cuisine products. I’ll have to shop around, as it’s too good to pass up. More importantly, we don’t want the GMOs that you get in regular soy products or other foods for that matter.

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On Being Green

In Food For Thought on April 5, 2013 at 12:00 pm

When I met my husband about 20 years ago, he’d already been a vegetarian for about a decade – well the type of vegetarian that still eats fish, eggs and dairy. This suited me fine as I had some experience from other vegetarians I knew, and it was fun to try new foods and recipes together.

Slowly over time, and as our family expanded with the birth of our daughter, he somehow strayed and reintroduced meat and chicken into his diet. We were always pretty healthy eaters but as time passed, we made a conscious effort to move towards organic, whole foods. Who wants to eat all those toxins anyways?

Credit my daughter for pushing us further by bringing home films such as Food, Inc.; Super Size Me; Forks Over Knives; and Burzynski, Cancer is Serious Business. Other efforts made, such as reading The Veganist by Kathy Freston reaffirmed our resolve to move back to being essentially vegetarian although we are now striving to be vegan at least 95 percent of the time.

It’s funny how people rarely think of health issues, until they’ve fallen ill and would do anything to feel better again. One thing that makes a lot of sense to us is our interconnected with the environment and food we eat. How can we not be? Do we really believe we can poison our land, air and water and that it won’t affect us? While we might turn a blind eye to pesticides, factory farming, genetic modifications and the like, these things have no problem finding us. Notice the increases in cancers and sickness everywhere? I don’t think it’s a coincidence.